Scots Fall to Host Hornets 62-54

Bryan Nelson led the Scots in scoring with 12 points.

KALAMAZOO, Mich. ¡ In the championship game of the Micro Vane Holiday Classic, the Wooster men's basketball team dropped a 62-54 decision to the host Kalamazoo Hornets on Saturday afternoon. This marks the second straight year that Kalamazoo has won its annual holiday tournament.

Despite shooting just 35 percent (9-of-26) from the field, Wooster led the Hornets 27-26 at halftime. The Scots continued to shoot poorly in the second half, hitting 23 percent (6-of-26) of their shots en route to being outscored 36-27 in that stanza.

Kalamazoo's Brad Phillips was selected the tournament's Most Valuable Player after registering game-highs in both points with 18 and rebounds with eight in the championship game. Also contributing to the Hornet attack were Dirk Rhinehart, who had 14 points, and Steve Thwaites, who added 10 points and five boards. Rhinehart and Thwaites were each named to the all-tournament team for their efforts.

Leading the way for Wooster was freshman Bryan Nelson (Kettering, Ohio / Kettering Fairmont) who tallied 12 points, including 8-of-10 from the foul line, and six rebounds. Also scoring in double figures for the Scots were freshman Matt Smith (Elida, Ohio / Elida) and senior John Ellenwood (Sylvania, Ohio / Sylvania Northview), who scored 11 and 10 points, respectively. Ellenwood and Nelson represented Wooster on the all-tournament team.

The Scots, who entered the game ranked sixth in the country, dropped their record to 7-2 on the young season. Wooster will next play Hiram in a North Coast Athletic Conference contest on Wednesday, Dec. 29, at 8 p.m., in the second game of the 38th annual Mose Hole / Kiwanis Classic, hosted by The College of Wooster.